Touched by an Angel (1994–2003): Season 5, Episode 21 - Made in the U.S.A. - full transcript

I gave you a break, Del!

I gave you a chance
when no one in this town

- would give you bus fare.
- And I gave you back

exactly what you asked for;
you can't blame this on me.

You're the accountant... you
said you knew how to do this.

Del, you said nobody'd know.

Look, I was wrong, so sue me.

I'm out of here.
I'm not going to jail,

- not for you, not for anybody.
- Who said anything about jail?

Del, what exactly did you do?

Look, I made money for you.



Give me a break, Nick.

One percent profit margin

doesn't turn into ten percent
without a little creativity.

Get out of here, before I do
something we'd both regret.

Look, Nick, I'm sorry.

I've got a family...

They need me at
home, not behind bars.

So, what do you
think, Angel Girl?

Well, Nick Stratton
was a soldier once,

but it seems

that he sees enemies
everywhere he looks.

That's because the
war that he fought,

the enemy wasn't "over there"...

It was all around him.



And the cause
he was fighting for

was never black
and white, it was...

shades of gray.

He fought in the shadows,
and he lived in the shadows.

And nothing has been
clear to him since then.

He's a good man
with a bad attitude.

But, Tess,

sometimes when you live in
the gray places for too long,

after a while you don't
know who you are anymore...

or even what side you're on.

Well, you better help him
remember, Miss Wings,

because this is a battle
he cannot afford to lose.

♪ When you walk ♪

♪ Down the road ♪

♪ Heavy burden ♪

♪ Heavy load ♪

♪ I will rise ♪

♪ And I will walk with you ♪

♪ I'll walk with you ♪

♪ Till the sun
don't even shine ♪

♪ Walk with you ♪

♪ Every time, I tell you ♪

♪ I'll walk with you ♪

♪ Walk with you ♪

♪ Believe me, I'll
walk with you. ♪

IRS audit's in a couple of days.

Lousy time to
lose an accountant.

Are you sure you
can handle this?

Helping people find the
truth is one of my specialties.

The truth, yeah, well...

truth is... my
back's to the wall.

All the easier to
stand up straight.

Okay.

Uh, are you a coffee
drinker, Monica?

Oh, yes. To be honest,

I do enjoy a cup or
two now and again.

No sin in that.

I grew up on Cajun coffee.

It looks like mud, but...

it'll give you a jolt.

Thank you.

Do you still have
family down south?

Uh, not for a long time.

So, Monica, I'm sold.

Welcome aboard.

So, you can set up right here.

Everything you'll need's
on that top shelf there.

It gonna throw you I
make a couple of calls?

No. Just pretend I'm not here.

Okay.

Uh, yeah, Nick
Stratton for Jeffrey.

Jeffrey, buddy!

Whoa, whoa, hold on a minute.

Have I ever let you down?

I got some rush workers

starting today...
You'll have your pants

on Monday as ordered.

Yeah.

I'll stay in touch. Right.

Bye-bye.

- Excuse me, Nick?
- Yeah?

I notice there's a lot of
brand-new entries in this book.

Right. Uh... good eye.

I got a little behind
on the books.

It occurred to me last
night that I should catch up

before the IRS makes a Federal
case of it, know what I mean?

Yes, they tend to do that.

- Yeah.
- - WOMAN: Excuse me, please?

Tuesdays... Application
day is Tuesday.

Oh, no, I am Am-Nhac Nguyen.

You hire me for steam press.

- I come early.
- Okay, look,

rule number one: you people
use the employee entrance only,

and no employees in
my office ever, got it?

I don't mean to bother.

Too late.

Come on, Monica,

I'll give you both
the grand tour.

Everybody has a daily quota.

Shift starts at 8:00,

and don't leave
here until you make it.

Okay, there's no talking on
the floor while you're working.

During your breaks,
if you have to talk,

it's English only.

Yes. If we work all day
we can go to class at night,

and he pay.

You pay for citizenship classes?

They got to make
their quota first.

All right, pay attention.

If you can't handle
the job, get the hell out.

Nobody's holding
a gun to your head.

Have you got
anything else to say?

Go on, get out. You're fired.

All right, pay attention.

Push here, then pull here.

Aw, don't worry about that.

It's fine.

It's absolutely fine.

All right, watch.

'Kay, ready? Watch.

Push, pull.

Try it.

Okay.

Good. Okay, get to work.

It's nice to meet you, Am-Nhac.

I'm sure you'll do very well.

Thank you.

See that one there?

Her name is Kai.

Her grandmother
taught her to sew

in a little village in Vietnam.

Kai dreams of making
beautiful dresses

to wear to parties

with rooms filled with other
women in beautiful dresses.

Leili Hyashi, she dreams
of going to the movies

every night for
the rest of her life.

She'd love to meet Brad Pitt.

And Vita here, she dreams
of earning enough money

to go to college and
study engineering.

Why do they put up with Nick

and his faulty equipment,

his bad lighting
and his stale air?

Why don't they go
somewhere else?

Well, baby, for
some of these people,

there is nowhere else.

They come to
America for opportunity,

and Nick is providing
it despite himself.

He's helping the
people he hates?

There's nothing black and white

about this man, is there?

No, there was no black and
white in the war that he fought,

and he's still fighting it.

And these women are
willing to put up with all of that

for the reward at
the end of the road.

Citizenship.

What if they don't make
it to the end of the road?

Oh, they'll make it
to the end of the road.

They have this most
magnificent teacher.

Welcome, babies.
My name is Tess,

and I'm here to teach
you all how to become

- American citizens.
- Excuse me, Miss Tess?

I am Am-Nhac Nguyen,
and this is my father, Gao.

He meet me after work and
walk me home in the dark.

Is it all right that he stay?

Of course it's all right.

Nice to meet you.

You're welcome to our class.

- Class not only for workers?
- Oh, no.

- So, if we're all here, let's get started.
- Kai still working.

Didn't make quota yet.

Well, maybe you could let her

use your notes
of the class, Lang.

Not make quota, not come class.

If you don't work hard enough,
Mr. Nick doesn't pay for class.

No. Nick doesn't
pay for this class.

This class is free for
anyone who wants to learn

how to become an
American citizen.

But he still make rule...

Must finish work to leave.

No leave, no come to class.

Let me tell you a
story about rules.

During the 1700s,

the English had
all kinds of rules

for Americans to follow,

but the people here decided
they would make their own rules.

And so they wrote a declaration,

their Declaration
of Independence.

"We hold these truths
"to be self-evident,

"that all men are created equal,

"and that they are endowed

"by their Creator with
certain unalienable Rights,

"that among these
"rights are Life...

"Liberty... and the
pursuit of Happiness."

Founding Fathers never
see the place we work.

No happiness there.

We won't work there
long once we pass test.

If we pass test.

There is very much to remember.

Oh, remembering is easy
when you know the trick.

You like music?

Music will be on the test?

No, but in order
to pass the test,

you're gonna have to know
the names of all the presidents,

and music will help you do that.

♪ George Washington, John ♪

♪ Adams ♪

♪ And Thomas Jefferson... ♪

Okay, listen up.

Quotas are rising today.

Ten pieces each.

If the new girl can come
in here and meet her quota

her first day...

that tells me the
rest of you people

are holding something back.

- Nick...
- I don't want to hear it, Monica.

Anybody else have
anything to say?

Good.

He only raised
quota because of you.

I need water.

Okay. Okay.

Okay, you'll be okay, Am-Nhac,

but you should take a break.

But I have to make quota.

Quota?

Quota?

Quota?!

You can't even do
your job anymore.

You're out of here.

Nick, she's hurt.

- Shh.
- Why do you treat us like this?

Tess says everybody work
for happiness in America.

She never meet you.

Can't you give her...

What? Give her a break?

When's somebody
gonna give me a break?

I said you're fired.

You're fired.

It's root beer.

That's nice.

Not everybody came
back from Vietnam

an alcoholic basket case.

I didn't think you were.

Am-Nhac is from Vietnam.

She's not the enemy, Nick.

You don't have to terminate her.

That's one of those fancy
words we used in 'Nam...

"Terminate this threat."

Meant kill 'em all.

Let God sort it out.

God had nothing to do with it.

No kidding.

You can't fire her.

She might have died in there.

Is the girl okay?

She should see a doctor.

Worker's compensation
will cover that.

Yeah, sure, if you pay it up.

If you fire her and
you don't have it,

you'll have bigger legal
bills than you can afford.

I can't afford to keep
her if she can't work.

And I can't afford to fire her.

Nothing is ever easy is it?

Nothing is easy, but...

some things are right.

Please let her stay.

Great. We'll have
two gimps in the joint.

You play?

No. I wish I did.

Let me give you
your first lesson.

Okay, second...

Okay, ring finger,
second string, second fret.

Okay, next finger, next
string. Next finger, next string.

Hold it tight. Strong.

There you go. An "A."

You took this with
you to Vietnam?

I was never very good, but...

I'd play all night and the
guys would laugh at me,

but nobody ever
asked me to stop.

What did you do there?

Never ask a vet what
he did in Vietnam.

I'm sorry.

I'm not being curious about you,

I'm being interested in you.

Is there a difference?

There is to me.

I was in a unit that
transported VC P.O.W.'s

to South Vietnamese camps.

I was the guy in the back

guarding those guys.

I look at them,
they look at me...

nobody said anything.

We couldn't speak the
same language, but...

Music is the universal language.

Yeah.

The blues are the
blues wherever you are.

I've got to get back in.

Nick?

Why are you angry
all of the time?

I'm losing my business.

It makes me angry.

I think you're
losing your business

because you're angry.

Yeah.

That's a friendship
bracelet from Vietnam.

Why would you want
a reminder of a war

that you want to forget?

I really want to know.

We were going to Play
Cu with some prisoners.

We caught this
guy building a bomb

in a little village
we'd just taken back.

We didn't know if he was
a good guy or a bad guy,

but we couldn't take any chances

so we threw him in the
truck with the other prisoners.

He could've been V.C.

He could've been friendly.
He could've been out to hurt us.

He could've been
trying to help us.

When we got to Play Cu, this guy

keeps trying to
get my attention.

He was trying to get me

to look at something
on his shoulder.

This?

No.

This? What?

The peace sign was

a totally American thing.

I knew that kid couldn't be V.C.

They'd have shot him
for a tattoo like that.

- Peace.
- But then... I couldn't be sure.

The whole war was like that.

Shades of grey.

Yeah.

Amidst the chaos,
I untied the guy.

I didn't know what to do,

so I took a chance.

His arm was injured,
and I loosened his hands.

He gave me this
friendship bracelet

to say thanks I guess.

I was just about to
put the rope back on

when we got hit
by mortar shells.

Yeah. There was
so much confusion.

The guy just took off.

I, I never saw him again.

Anyway, two days later some kid

booby traps a tent
and... killed three men.

You don't know that it was him.

I'll never know now.

Ah, Nick, you can't
blame yourself.

You were helping a
young man in pain.

Yeah, well...

a military jury didn't think so.

I was court-martialed

for giving aid and
comfort to the enemy.

I spent the rest of
the war in the stockade

getting knocked around
every time the guard

had his back turned.

They broke my nose.

They broke my
shoulder so many times

all the nerves are
shot in my hand.

By the time I got home,
nobody gave me a break.

My mom and dad,

Mr. and Mrs. God Bless America,

disowned me.

I was a war criminal.

My Uncle Joe finally
gave me a job at this place.

And then he left it
to me when he died.

He was the only one who...

Uncle Joe had faith in you.

He was a good guy.

I didn't deserve this place.

But now you see why
I want to hold onto it.

But Nick...

as long as you hold onto
that bracelet, you'll always...

Look Monica, three men died...

because somebody
took the cuffs off.

This cuff is staying on.

Besides, it reminds
me to never trust

sweet, innocent faces again.

Hi.

I'm Andrew from the IRS.

I'm looking for Nick Stratton.

It's true, it's true.

The only sure things
in life are death and...

taxes.

Okay, come on upstairs.

We missed you and your father

at class tonight, Am-Nhac.

Wasn't easy
teaching Lang to sing

the Bill of Rights without you.

It will be a long time
before we come back.

Well, if Am-Nhac
can't come to class...

Tess will bring
class to Am-Nhac.

Let's start with the presidents.

♪ George Washington... ♪

What is this?

Third quarter, '97.

Good morning.

Don't you guys
ever take a break?

When we start something

we like to see it through.

I know it seems
like a long haul,

but this way we get to
where we're going a lot faster.

Was she here all night?

Yes she was.

Good morning, Ms. Tess.

Oh, good morning.
Is it morning already?

I was having so much
fun I hardly noticed.

Well... we made
yesterday's quota.

And we made a
good start on today's.

Isn't it wonderful

what a little teamwork can do.

I'm expecting both of
you at class this evening.

♪♪

Oh!

All right, it's all right.

Nick.

This can't be right.

The numbers don't lie.

Taxes were paid on only
half of your employees

for the last three years.

You have a big problem here.

Okay, but maybe we can,
we can make it go away.

Maybe, uh...

Look, you're friendly
with that Andrew guy.

Talk to him, tell him that
we, uh, lost some paperwork.

Tell him that we... I won't lie.

Monica.

I know how much this
place means to you

and that your Uncle
Joe wanted you to keep it

to make you a better person,

but he wouldn't want you to
keep it with lying and cheating.

Andrew says the IRS will work
with you on a payment plan.

Oh, Monica.

Don't you get it?

There's no money
for a payment plan.

The enemy is closing in.

You forget your coat again.

Sorry, Father.

- Thank you.
- Mm-hmm.

Peace?

Peace, peace.

Peace?

It's him.

Who?

I can't believe it, it's him.

That man?

Who is he?

The kid, the bomber.

I never thought I'd
ever see him again, but

here he is.

And all I want
to do is kill him.

You don't know that it's him.

Oh, it's him.

You were just a kid, so was he.

You thought you were
doing the right thing.

You acted out of the
goodness of your heart, Nick.

Can't you act that way now?

He lived, h-he grew up,
he had a beautiful daughter,

and he wants to give
her the American dream.

Isn't that what you
wanted for him?

Yes... but I wanted
that dream for me, too.

Well, seems like everybody
made their quota today.

Very good.

We worked together like you say.

Everyone helped me.

I am grateful.

Well, congratulations, baby.

You've just
learned the best part

of what it means
to be an American...

To stand up and
stand together...

when it counts.

My father says American
soldier help him to live.

He is my hero... in here.

Well, now, in here
is a good start,

but being a hero means taking
an action out here in the world,

setting an example, standing
up for what you believe in,

and that's what we're
going to study about tonight.

Like Boston Tea Party.

Good, yes.

Men make disguises and
dump tea from English ship

into Boston Harbor
to pr... Protest.

Protest tax on tea.

And the colonialists were
determined not to drink

any more English tea

until the English listened
to what they had to say.

Nick, I wish I had
better news for you.

Just cut to the chase.

You owe $57,804.09

in back taxes and penalties.

But he doesn't have
to pay it all at once.

No, no, there are other
arrangements that can be made.

Sure, maybe you can
throw me back in jail.

Nick, the government
would rather have your money

than see you behind bars.

Maybe you could get a bank loan.

I know you find this
hard to believe, Monica,

but the bank does not see
this place as a good investment

or me.

Nick, I'm sure that we
can figure something out.

- We done here?
- Yeah.

Yeah, that's, that's pretty
much all we can do now.

Okay, well, then,
thanks, good-bye.

What are you going to do?

Nothing... it's over.

The government gets the
factory and I hit the street.

It was bound to
happen sooner or later.

There's something
you're not telling me.

You're right, I'm not, and
that sweet little face of yours

isn't going to get you
anywhere this time.

This is no good.

Do 'em over, all of 'em.

I guess you won't be
making your quota today.

This is perfect.

I say it's no good.

I don't have to take this.

And what are you
going to do about it?

Teacher... she teaches
Bill of Rights and more.

We have right earn decent wage.

We have right to be
safe where we work.

We have right to
be treated nice.

We have rights no one take
away... no one, not even you.

It says in Constitution.

Don't you dare talk to
me about the Constitution.

I earned those rights with
my sweat and my blood.

Those rights are for
Americans, they're not for you

and they never will be,

and there's not a damn
thing you can do about it.

Your teacher ever tell you

I have the right to fire
every last one of you

if you don't do your jobs?

Wait.

You make things better.

Or what?

We make no more clothes.

We make Boston
Tea Party instead.

Am-Nhac, this is
not the right time.

You listen now, Mr. Nick?

No... you listen.

You're fired... all of you.

Nick.

Think about what you're doing.

You're taking your anger
out on these people,

and they have nothing
to do with your pain.

Monica, get out.

I don't need you, I
don't need anybody.

"Die American."

I'll show 'em justice.

Okay.

Now you can see a
little American justice.

Oh, no.

No.

No, no.

Miss Tess?

Yes, baby.

Today... something bad happened.

Oh.

You want to talk about it?

Come on, let's sit
down and talk about it.

You really think
Mr. Nick listen to me?

He needs you as
much as you need him.

Okay. I talk to
him in the morning.

Oh, no, no, baby. You
need to talk to him tonight

before it's too late.

Oh, God.

Oh, God, help me.

Help me, please.

- Father!
- Peace.

Kill him.

- 57,000...
- You're fired.

- Peace.
- I won't lie.

- Give me a break.
- I make money for you.

Somebody took the cuts.

Three men died.

Will you listen now, Mr. Nick?

Uh.

Uh.

Monica.

You're still alive, Nick.

Get out of here.
You're gonna get killed.

Look at me.

I... don't get it.

Sometimes in moments
of real danger, people say

that their whole lives
flash before their eyes.

And that instant,

that single moment
between life and death,

can seem like an eternity.

That's where you
are right now, Nick,

because that's
where God lives...

In every eternal moment.

Who are you?

I'm an angel.

I live in heaven,
but I serve on earth.

And sometimes,
I'm here in between

with people like you.

Am I gonna die?

Not in this moment.

And this moment is the only
one that matters right now.

Tell God to go away.

I tried that stuff...

Love thy enemy,
turn the other cheek,

blessed be the peacemakers...
And it ruined my life.

Tell God to split and
take his angel with him.

Do you think that God didn't
see what you did that day

with the boy in the truck?

He did, and He smiled.

For every time
you stop and honor

even the least of your
brothers, you honor Him.

And every time you
try to be a peacemaker,

the world may not recognize
it, but God always will,

and He will honor you.

If He did, I didn't notice.

No, you didn't,

because the voice of God
can quickly get drowned out

with the sounds of anger

and guilt and hatred.

But God likes to be heard,

and so, He spoke blessings
and encouragement

to you through someone else.

Through someone
who was listening.

Your Uncle Joe.

God can use someone
else to speak to you,

to tell you the great things

that you could have
done with your life.

You could have
turned a small factory

into a strong business.

You could have turned
a moment of kindness

into a lifetime of peacemaking.

So there is a God.

And He knows what I tried to do.

And He tried to help me back.

And I blew it.

Literally.

I suppose you did blow it, Nick.

But I have good news.

God loves you.

He loves you so much.

And I don't think
there's a soul on earth

who doesn't need to hear that.

Just as you offered hope

to a young Vietnamese boy,

just as your uncle
offered you hope

when you returned home,

now God is offering
you hope and forgiveness

if you'll just step
out of the in between

and stand on the
side of God's love.

I don't deserve it.

No one does.

That's what makes
it such a miracle.

Oh, God.

Please forgive me.

Monica, wait. Monica?

Monica, wait.

Monica, wait. Help me!

Mr. Nick?

Mr. Nick? Hello!
Are you still here?

Help! Over here! Hurry!

Mr. Nick, you're hurt.

There's a bomb over there.

That's it.

That's it.

Yeah, there you go.

I go get help.

Okay.

Why you make that?

I'm sorry, Am-Nhac.

You won't like the answer.

You know my name?

Yes. I know your name.

And I know your father.

I knew your father in the war.

Friendship, remember?

You are the soldier that
saved my father's life?

It's really you?

That young man
with a guitar is you?

It's me... somewhere
under all these years.

My friend!

That's the last
good thing I ever did.

The day you let me free,

I ran for as far as I can.

I go to live in village

many, many miles away, and
I told them how you save me.

Far away.

You never went back?

Huh.

You didn't come
back three days later?

I never... come back.

I stay away.

I never see another
bomb... until tonight.

It wasn't you.

I never get a chance
to say thank you.

It was a long time ago.

But I never forget.

I name my daughter after you.

My name is Vietnamese for music.

Am-Nhac.

Can you ever forgive me?

I forgive.

Maybe now we can work together.

Make better for all of us.

Like father says.

You said that to
me a long time ago.

What does it mean?

No good deed go unrewarded.

Peace.

Peace.

Peace.

And that I take this
obligation freely,

without any mental reservation
or purpose of evasion.

So help me, God.

Welcome to America, babies.

They had a good teacher.

Not to mention

a whole lot of determination.

Well, I'm proud
of all my babies.

Citizens of America,
citizens of heaven.